the village idiot

That's a very kind offer, thanks. I try to steer clear of ropes and cables as much as possible, but if I get myself in a muddle I'll let you know.

Tirfor is a good shout but they are a bit of a time sapper. More suited to tree surgeons I think where you can charge £1000 per tree!?

Hi Josh, Is the ratchet wedge still going strong? I've just bent my second tree jack and need to start considering an alternative.

Hi AJS, That is a bigger question than it sounds This answer to the question of 'where to start' really boils down to 'what are the expectations/desires of the owners', and 'what are the make up of the sites'? Can you give us some more background information? Have you met with the local FC woodland officer?

Absolutely. Stubby got tickets for The Manger and witnessed the genre defining first performance (with the three wise men on backing vocals). He tells me the Sonseed version is very true to the original. Regrettably he missed the virgin birth having popped outside for a jimmy riddle.

It really was the night of two births. The Lord our saviour Jesus Christ and toe tapping pop classics. The lyrics from this profound musical moment were passed down through the millennia. Only one band have ever received the Divine blessing to revisit this poignant masterpiece. That band is Sonseed.

"My gun? Yes... It's in one of these pockets, I know it is." pat pat pat pat

Just re-read your post and see you already have that covered.

Presumably in time you'll add the dog's bollocks?

Err... quite right Eggs

Apology accepted, but I've got my eye on you daft.

You owe us all a very sincere apology young man! ?

I would consider it. Had a few near misses with dead limbs not visible from the ground.

I don't think we really need to Khriss. We've got plenty of the usual suspects (Buzzards, Sparrowhawks, Kestrels,) as well as Hobbies and Red Kites. Tawny owls are always about. We've even seen Barn owls hunting on the open rides within the Wood which is a little unusual.

Thanks Stere. Yes, the linear nature of rides does mean that they will spend part of each day in shade so going wide is good if the Woodland can take it. A certain amount of shade is no bad thing though as there are lots of plants that like a mixture. An East/West ride will benefit from a lot more sunlight than a North/South ride so it is probably a good idea to give the former priority if time and workload balancing is a factor. Our coppice compartments provide big areas of 'full day' sunlight

WIDE RIDENING VIII (or thereabouts) Just a quick update for you all on how the ride management work is coming along at the Wood. Some of you may remember that we are trying to get from fully tree'd ride edges to a three zone graduation in the vegetation to encourage the biodiversity potential. The ride edges started out looking like this: We set about felling most of the trees to a width of 15mtrs on both sides of the tracks, leaving any feature trees and the odd dormouse crossing point: The next job was to grind down all the stumps to leave a finish that we could easily mow in the future. 600 horsepower ought to do it!: This summer we have started to instigate the ride edge mowing regime to encourage the three zone structure. Short grass next to the centre ride graduating to a longer 'herby' strip, followed by a coppice like region next to the mature trees at the back. The picture below was taken a couple of days ago and shows the zonal structure pretty clearly. We are very happy with how it is turning out, especially after the controlled carnage of the mulching stage. We have done around 4km of ride over the last 3 years following this process, hopefully providing homes and feeding opportunities for a massive range of beasties. We are having a whole host of biological surveys done this year so we can check that we are having the desired results. More news on this when I hear back from the boffins. All the best, TVI

The new recruits are struggling to get to grips with the concept.

I have a 462 and really like it. Haven't tried the 500i though so can't give a direct comparison. At the moment it has an 18" bar on it with a big sprocket for supercharged ringing up. The only slight niggle I have with the 462 is that it is difficult to tension the chain fully when the saw is hot. I don't know if this is a design flaw or just me being a Norbert.

Yup.

Cases are also on the rise in Germany, Spain and Greece. It's mainly in younger people this time as these are the demographic that are mostly out socialising. Luckily this means that death rates are lower as younger people are still at much lower risk of dying from the virus.

Two 'nipples', a 'pipe', a 'hose', an 'old style breather' and dare I say it, a 'purge bulb' "they rely on being soaked with oil"! Keep an eye on this dude, he's a wrong'un.

OK, watched the whole 45 minute video and I'm a little concerned that you consider it about the most common sense you've heard on the pandemic. Pastor Jones (the self confessed "conspiracy theory preacher") sets out his credentials on having the inside scoop on the pandemic by stating that "before the Lord rearranged my life I was thinking about becoming a doctor".? He is also floating the theory that Covid is part of the prophesied fall of mankind, orchestrated by Satan, paving the way for the coming of the Antichrist.? Feel free to consider me a sheep, but I'm sticking with the scientists.

Could you provide us with a link to this proof? According to the CDC annual deaths from seasonal flu in the US over the last 10 years range from 12,000 to 61,000. Current figure for deaths from Covid this year in the US is 180,375 and counting.

This year I have been selling the split firewood green. As soon as we have 50 bags ready to go my buyer arranges a lorry to come and collect. This is a lot more space efficient and means I don't necessarily need covered storage space. If the OP is buying their wood in as cord, wholesale is probably not an option. It would be difficult to turn a profit. Has anyone done the sums on what percentage of their selling price is taken up with the delivery side of things, vehicle/fuel/time?

Well played that man!